The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) is a government agency that makes grants to art projects and nonprofit organizations in New York State.

According to its grant applications, NYSCA prioritizes funding organizations that incorporate critical race theory-inspired concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). ¹ NYSCA provides “racial equity” resources on its website, promoting ways for organizations and individuals to incorporate far-left DEI policies and concepts in their activities. Such methods include condemning any policy that results in “unequal outcome[s]” as being racist, condemning the promotion of capitalism, and assuming that the United States’s culture and government oppress ethnic minorities. ^{2 3 4 5 6}

Background

The New York State Council on the Arts is a government agency that funds art programs in New York State. According to its website, in 2023, NYSCA gave out $90 million in grants to artists and art programs and $132.5 million for art nonprofits to fund their operations. ^{7 8}

NYSCA provides operational grants of up to $2 million for arts and culture organizations with budgets under $2 million and grants ranging from $2 million to $10 million for larger nonprofits undertaking projects with budgets over $4 million. It also makes grants of up to $10,000 to individual artists and individual art projects. ⁹

Grant Eligibility

The New York State Council on the Arts makes grants to fund art programs and projects in New York state that are hosted by 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or federally recognized Native American nations and prequalify for funding through the New York Statewide Financial System. ¹⁰

NYSCA claims to fund “the widest spectrum” of art programs and “encourages” grantees to adopt its diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) initiatives, including providing services to ethnic minorities and LGBT people. ¹¹ On its grant application, it states that it “prioritizes” funding to organizations that have a “commitment” to DEIA initiatives. ¹²

Grant applications with NYSCA are evaluated in-part on the extent to which the prospective grantee prioritizes providing services to LGBT and ethnic-minority communities and how much of its marketing is directed towards “diverse audiences.” It also requires applicants to provide a written answer on the extent to which the organization’s “annual audience” consists of ethnic minorities and members of the LGBT, prefacing the question with an explanation that it prioritizes funding to groups that serve such individuals. NYSCA also requires applicants to provide a written answer as to how ethnic minorities and members of the LGBT community are serviced and provided accommodations to be more likely to engage with their work. The response question also asks how much of its programming is created by ethnic minorities and members of the LGBTQ community. ¹³

Equity Initiatives

On the New York State Council on the Arts’ “Racial Equity Resources” webpage, it states that the organization incorporates critical race theory-based concepts into its practices and promotes resources for individuals and organizations to incorporate for themselves. The resources consist of links to webpages, files, articles, and books that promote far-left concepts on addressing race issues. ¹⁴

NYSCA’s web page on racial equity refers visitors to Race Forward which publishes reports and offers training for individuals on the critical race theory concept of “racial equity” practices. ^{15 16} It also offers training for federal government employees to incorporate racial equity practices into their workplace policies and activities. ¹⁷ Race Forward promotes the idea within its training that individuals and organizations should behave and enact policies that uplift the socioeconomic status of all individuals under the guise of addressing so-called “systemic racism.” ^{18 19}

NYSCA’s web page on racial equity also refers visitors to Racial Equity Tools, a program of Equity In The Center. Racial Equity Tools offers learning materials that promote the critical race theory concepts of decolonization and systemic racism as well as the identity politics concept of intersectionality. It supports its promotion of ideas founded in critical race theory based on the idea that the United States’s culture and government oppress ethnic minorities. Racial Equity Tools argues that ethnic minorities are unsafe, unwelcomed, and discriminated against in all aspects of American society and that therefore society should embrace “racial equity” practices that actively combat such perceived issues. ^{20 21}

HowlRound

HowlRound is a grantee of New York State Council on the Arts and is referred to multiple times on NYSCA’s web page on racial equity resources. ²² HowlRound is a digital platform for left-of-center theater productions to promote their work and advocate for left-of-center social issues and  environmentalism. ^{23 24 25 26}

NYSCA refers web users to HowlRound’s hub which advocates for artists and individuals to incorporate the critical race theory-aligned concept of antiracism. ²⁷ On the page, it advocates for condemning any policy that results in “unequal outcome[s]” as being racist, particularly through the use of theater. ^{28 29}

NYSCA also refers users to HowlRound’s page on using theater to promote the left-of-center concept of decolonization. ³⁰ The page condemns the use of land by people and governments that were previously occupied, comparing such acts to genocide. It also condemns promoting capitalism and ‘normalizing’ the notion that there are two genders. ³¹

People

In January 2024, Erika Mallin was appointed as the executive director of the New York State Council on the Arts. She previously worked as the executive director of the Aspen Institute Arts Program as well as the Signature Theatre. ³²

1. NYSCA support for organizations. Accessed February 5, 2024. http://www.nysca.org/downloads/files/FY24Organizations-AppMan.pdf.
2. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
3. “Fundamentals, Core Concepts.” Racial Equity Tools. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://www.racialequitytools.org/resources/fundamentals/core-concepts/.
4. Rudiger, Anja. “Advancing Racial Equity A Framework for Federal Agencies.” Race Forward, January 2022. https://www.google.com/url?q=https://rfarchive.raceforward.org/system/files/GARE%2520Advancing%2520Racial%2520Equity%2520-%2520A%2520Framework%2520for%2520Federal%2520Agencies_2022.02.02-1330.pdf&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1707166149807662&usg=AOvVaw3v2q367vOZTPZMxY04OWRZ
5. “Advancing Racial Justice in Our Policies, Institutions and Culture.” Race Forward. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://www.raceforward.org/.
6. Elliott, Jane, and Annalisa Dias. “Decolonizing Theatre/La Descolonización Del Teatro.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/decolonizing-theatrela-descolonizacion-del-teatro.
7. “About NYSCA.” New York State Council on the Arts. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/our-mission.
8. “FY2024 Funding Opportunities.” New York State Council on the. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/FY2024FundingOpportunities.
9. “FY2024 Funding Opportunities.” New York State Council on the. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/FY2024FundingOpportunities.
10. “Start Here.” New York State Council on the Arts. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/node/135566.
11. NYSCA support for organizations. Accessed February 5, 2024. http://www.nysca.org/downloads/files/FY24Organizations-AppMan.pdf.
12. NYSCA support for organizations. Accessed February 5, 2024. http://www.nysca.org/downloads/files/FY24Organizations-AppMan.pdf.
13. NYSCA support for organizations. Accessed February 5, 2024. http://www.nysca.org/downloads/files/FY24Organizations-AppMan.pdf.
14. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
15. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
16. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
17. “Advancing Racial Justice in Our Policies, Institutions and Culture.” Race Forward. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://www.raceforward.org/.
18. “Training Overview.” Race Forward. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://www.raceforward.org/training-%26-events/training-overview.
19. Rudiger, Anja. “Advancing Racial Equity A Framework for Federal Agencies.” Race Forward, January 2022. https://www.google.com/url?q=https://rfarchive.raceforward.org/system/files/GARE%2520Advancing%2520Racial%2520Equity%2520-%2520A%2520Framework%2520for%2520Federal%2520Agencies_2022.02.02-1330.pdf&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1707166149807662&usg=AOvVaw3v2q367vOZTPZMxY04OWRZ
20. “Fundamentals, Core Concepts.” Racial Equity Tools. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://www.racialequitytools.org/resources/fundamentals/core-concepts/.
21. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
22. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
23. “Storytelling in Crisis.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/happenings/storytelling-crisis.
24. “About.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/about.
25. “Theory of Change.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/theory-change.
26. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
27. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
28. “Anti-Racist Theatre.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/anti-racist-theatre.
29. Ruiz, Jerry, and Kristen van Ginhoven. “Playwrights of Color, White Directors, and Exposing Racist Policy.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/playwrights-color-white-directors-and-exposing-racist-policy.
30. Racial Equity Resources: NYSCA. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://arts.ny.gov/resources/equity.
31. Elliott, Jane, and Annalisa Dias. “Decolonizing Theatre/La Descolonización Del Teatro.” HowlRound Theatre Commons. Accessed February 5, 2024. https://howlround.com/decolonizing-theatrela-descolonizacion-del-teatro.
32. “Erika Mallin to Serve as Executive Director of New York State Council on the Arts.” Niagara Frontier Publications, January 18, 2024. https://www.wnypapers.com/news/article/current/2024/01/18/158433/erika-mallin-to-serve-as-executive-director-of-new-york-state-council-on-the-arts.